Secretary-General of Hezbollah, Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah, during the ceremony honoring martyr Fouad Shokor. Photo: Screenshot/Al Mayadeen.
Hezbollah’s secretary-general codenamed today’s response to the Israeli aggression on Beirut’s Southern Suburb and the martyrdom of leader Fouad Shokor “Operation Arbaeen”
The primary targets of today’s operation—launched in response to the assassination of martyred Commander Fouad Shokor—were the central Glilot base of Israeli military intelligence Aman, incorporating the central hub of Unit 8200, located near Tel Aviv, and the Ein Shemer airbase, confirmed Hezbollah Secretary-General Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah.
Dubbing the response Operation Arbaeen in a speech today, Sayyed Nasrallah reflected on the details of the operation and debunked Israeli claims that preceded and followed it.
Operation Arbaeen
Sayyed Nasrallah explained that the codename Operation Arbaeen was chosen deliberately as the world commemorates the Arbaeen of Imam Hussein. He specified that the operation was set to commence after the dawn prayer, after the Resistance fighters had everything set in place, precisely at 5:15 am.
Concerning the delay in the response, he confirmed that the Resistance was prepared to take action from day one following the martyrdom of Commander Fouad Shokor. However, the delay was intentional, serving as part of the strategy for punishment.
He stressed that the waiting period was also meant to allow the Resistance to assess whether the response would be coordinated across the Axis of Resistance or handled by each front individually and to make way for the negotiations, as the ultimate goal was to halt the aggression on Gaza.
Why Glilot?
Sayyed Nasrallah highlighted that the Glilot base is located 110 km from the Blue Line between Lebanon and occupied Palestine and 1,500 meters from Tel Aviv’s periphery, placing it just outside Tel Aviv. He added that the operation’s second target was the Ein Shemer airbase, situated 75 km from Lebanon and 40 km from Tel Aviv.
He confirmed that “a significant number of drones hit their intended targets, but the enemy is keeping all relevant details concealed, but the days and nights will reveal the truth of what happened there.”
Sayyed Nasrallah explained that the operation entailed two phases. The initial phase was focused on targeting sites and barracks in northern occupied Palestine with the hundreds of intended rockets to exhaust and deplete the Iron Dome and interceptor missiles, paving the way for phase two, which saw the swarms of drones heading toward their intended targets.
Regarding the guidelines set by the Resistance for selecting the said targets, Sayyed Nasrallah noted that they had to be military, not civilian, directly related to the assassination of the martyred leader, and located deep inside the occupied territory and close to Tel Aviv.
Israeli narrative full of lies: Sayyed Nasrallah
In response to the occupation’s claims of thwarting an attack on Tel Aviv, the Lebanese Resistance leader explained, “Our initial plan was to launch 300 rockets in this operation, but we ended up launching 340,” affirming that the enemy “did not thwart anything.”
“What was planned was achieved to the fullest,” Sayyed Nasrallah asserted.
He emphasized that the Israeli account of events was “full of lies,” reflecting the inherent weakness of the Israeli entity. He pointed out that no rocket launchers were targeted before the operation, adding, however, that only two were struck, yet only after the operation was completed.
Meanwhile, the entirety of the drone launch platform remained intact both before and after the operation.
Sayyed Nasrallah stressed that “the enemy’s claims about bombing strategic and precise missiles that were prepared to target Tel Aviv are sheer lies,” stressing that the Resistance, with a clear and precise strategy, had no intention of using such weapons in this particular operation. Yet, this does not mean that the Resistance would not use them in the future, or the near future to be more precise, according to Sayyed Nasrallah.
He further pointed out that the sites targeted by the occupation forces this morning on the outskirts of towns were either empty or had been evacuated at the request of martyr Fouad Shokor.
Debunking Israeli claims of carrying out airstrikes that nipped Hezbollah’s operation in the bud, the Lebanese Resistance leader affirmed that the enemy had no intel whatsoever, stressing that all its raids an hour before the operation were the result of the natural movement of the fighters on the ground in preparation for the operation.
Sayyed Nasrallah further debunked Israeli claims that the Resistance’s intention was to target civilians, as he detailed the aforementioned guidelines the Resistance followed in choosing its targets, one of which is it not being civilian.
On Israeli claims that the military carried out preemptive strikes in Lebanon, Sayyed Hassan affirmed that “all the raids launched by the enemy did not target the area of operation” and that “this was nothing less than an aggression,” before adding that supposedly it was a preemptive strike, “it did not have any impact whatsoever on today’s operation.”
In a related context, Sayyed Nasrallah noted that the Resistance launched drones from Bekaa for the first time, confirming that they successfully crossed the borders into occupied Palestine despite the long distance.
Terms of completing the response
Sayyed Nasrallah emphasized that the Resistance would monitor the outcome of the operation, especially amid the enemy’s obscurement of the truth regarding the two targeted bases.
“If the outcome is satisfactory and achieves the intended goal, we will consider the retaliatory operation complete, but if the result is not sufficient [as per the Resistance’s terms], we reserve the right to respond at a time of our choosing,” he maintained.
Hezbollah’s secretary-general concluded that the Resistance will remain steadfast in its support for Gaza, its people, Palestine, and the nation’s sanctities, regardless of the circumstances, challenges, or sacrifices, noting that today’s operation “may benefit the Palestinian side or the Arab side in terms of negotiations.”
He emphasized that “the message to the enemy and the Americans behind it is that any hopes of silencing the support fronts are futile, no matter the sacrifices, particularly on the Lebanese front.”
